


The Waiting Game

by freakanature06



Series: A3! Rarepair Week 2020 [7]
Category: A3! (Video Game)
Genre: A3! Rarepair Week, Age Difference, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Mutual Pining, Not Actually Unrequited Love, Pining, but like it's three years it just kind of gets touched on
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-19
Updated: 2020-07-19
Packaged: 2021-03-05 02:41:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,722
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25386979
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/freakanature06/pseuds/freakanature06
Summary: A long and very awkward conversation with Omi-kun had finally led him to the realization that what he felt for Kazu-kun was romantic and sexual attraction. Now, Taichi wasn't someone to hate on people for their sexuality or who they loved! But he was pretty darn sure he was straight! He liked lots of cute girls and it was only a weird one-off thing that his first love had just been a girly guy, okay?But the more he tried to deny it, the more he found himself watching Kazu-kun doing simple, everyday things and wishing that he could just rest his head on the older boy's shoulder or hold his hand or give him an encouraging kiss or...Yeah, pretending it wasn't true never even had a chance of working.Taichi feels a lot of love for Kazunari, but it seems so much like it was never meant to be...
Relationships: Miyoshi Kazunari/Nanao Taichi
Series: A3! Rarepair Week 2020 [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1829470
Kudos: 29





	The Waiting Game

**Author's Note:**

> TAICHI IS MY BEST BOY so of course I had to torture him a little?
> 
> I've got a little note at the bottom as well, so please make sure to read that after you finish. c:
> 
> Written for A3! Rarepair Week Day 7 - Free Day

It had been a slow realization, when Taichi was sixteen, that the affection he felt for one Kazunari Miyoshi was more than just friendly on many levels. Of course he still really liked Kazu-kun as a friend! But there was more to it than that. He found himself thinking about how nice Kazu-kun looked in his new outfits, about how cute his hair looked today, about how soft his skin must feel. And, very confusingly for Taichi, his thoughts would often go far deeper into the gutter than that.  
  
A long and very awkward conversation with Omi-kun had finally led him to the realization that what he felt for Kazu-kun was romantic and sexual attraction. Now, Taichi wasn't someone to hate on people for their sexuality or who they loved! But he was pretty darn sure he was straight! He liked lots of cute girls and it was only a weird one-off thing that his first love had just been a girly guy, okay?  
  
But the more he tried to deny it, the more he found himself watching Kazu-kun doing simple, everyday things and wishing that he could just rest his head on the older boy's shoulder or hold his hand or give him an encouraging kiss or...   
  
Yeah, pretending it wasn't true never even had a chance of working.   
  
That was the point when Taichi had decided he was going to confess. He had to at least put his feelings out there and let Kazu-kun decide whether Taichi was worth it or not. Which, let's be honest, that was the most nerve-wracking thing a person could do. It took Taichi  _ weeks _ to work up the courage to even bring up romance around Kazu-kun.  
  
When he casually inquired about whether Kazu-kun had a girlfriend, though, the response he got wasn't quite what he expected.  
  
"Ahhhh, sorry Taicchan!" Kazu-kun held his hands up in front of himself in a pleading gesture. "Can we wait to talk about this? You're still a minor, you know..."  
  
And that was that. Taichi was still a kid to Kazunari, so he couldn't even be talked to about romance at all without the older boy feeling uncomfortable. Honestly, Taichi had never thought about it before then, but Kazu-kun was a good three years older than him, and about to turn twenty at the time. He was very much an adult and Taichi was still very much a child.  
  
It hurt. Of course it hurt. And Taichi tried very hard to just pretend like it had never happened. Kazu-kun would still hang out with him and hang all over him casually, but Taichi's heart ached constantly as a result of his rejection. It got so bad, sometime shortly after Kazunari's birthday, that designer had actually pulled Taichi aside to ask what was wrong.  
  
Taichi dodged the question, refusing to meet Kazu-kun's eyes until he found his cheeks smooshed together by a hand grabbing below his chin, forced to face Kazunari's intense and hurt expression. "Just a couple more years, Taicchan. That's all."  
  
What a forward-thinking way to see it, Taichi remembered thinking to himself. That was why Kazu-kun had no problem pretending Taichi's awkward questions about his relationships had never happened. That was why the older boy kept treating him the same as always. It would only be a couple more years before they would have to part ways. Kazunari couldn't stay a part of Mankai Company forever, and it was obvious that when he got his degree he would move on to some super high-paying designer role at some bigtime corporation. He cared about Taichi as a friend and wanted it to stay that way for a little longer.  
  
Taichi got it. He nodded slowly, felt a soft pat on his cheek, and tried very hard to pretend his knees didn't go weak at the sight of Kazu-kun's relieved smile.  
  
A couple of years was nothing. Taichi could pretend he didn't feel the way he did for a couple of years.  
  
***

A couple of years went by a lot faster than Taichi could have foreseen, but as the seasons passed and Kazunari still remained with the Company despite taking on a role at a bigtime corporation (just like Taichi was sure he would!), Taichi became more and more confused about his interpretation of Kazu-kun's words that night. Had he meant something else entirely? Or had he just changed his mind in the interim and not talked to Taichi about it? They talked about practically everything together!  
  
Actually, in the past two years he and Kazunari had grown even closer as friends. And, as an unfortunate side effect, his crush on his best friend had just grown stronger and stronger. There wasn't a day that went by that Taichi didn't think about Kazu-kun and how much he wished he could just reach out and hold him. In fact, he now found it absolutely impossible to have any "alone time" without thinking about Kazu-kun. Which usually led to him awkwardly avoiding his friend the next day and explaining it away with feeling sick.  
  
Boy did he get sick a lot lately...  
  
It was on the evening before Taichi's eighteenth birthday that the whole ordeal reached its crescendo.  
  
By some stroke of luck (good or bad, Taichi couldn't decide), Omi-kun had chosen to stay with a friend that night, which meant that Taichi was alone with Kazu-kun in his room, trying to keep himself distracted with the show they'd put on instead of staring at his friend. It was a gruesome few hours that dragged by like molasses, made all the worse by the fact that Kazu-kun kept trying to talk to him about how excited he must be for his birthday.  
  
Honestly, Taichi wasn't nearly as stoked as Kazunari seemed to think he ought to be. It was just another year older. And he'd be getting ready to start university soon, which was a terror in and of itself. He just didn't think turning eighteen was that big of a deal.  
  
It was ten minutes to midnight when Taichi's nerves finally frayed to the point that he had to remove himself from the situation. Yawning exaggeratedly, Taichi looked at the clocked and let his eyes go wide.  
  
"Wow, it's this late? Man, I should really hit the hay." He was an actor, for God's sake, why did his voice  _ sound so stilted?! _ But as he let his eyes slide to the side, he found that Kazu-kun looked panicked and uncertain. Which just threw a whole wrench into Taichi's plans.  
  
Grabbing Taichi's hand, Kazunari dragged him back down beside him as the younger man tried to get up. "H-hey, hey. What's the rush? It's almost your birthday, yeah? Let me at least stay till midnight!"   
  
There was something desperate and raw in Kazu-kun's voice that made Taichi's gut twist into knots of concern. He frowned a little, taking a slow breath as he studied his friend's face.  
  
"Hey, Kazu-kun... Are you okay? You look, like... really upset for some reason."   
  
Kazunari's eyes darted back and forth, looking between Taichi's face and the clock behind him. He seemed intent on knowing the time, or maybe there was something strange going on with the clock?   
  
As Taichi turned around to look and see what might be wrong, the numbers switched. 12:00 AM.   
  
"Huh. I guess it's my birthday now..."  
  
The clock seemed totally normal, so Taichi faced himself towards Kazunari again, opening his mouth to ask him again if he was alright. Only to find his face grabbed and pulled into an unexpected, very sloppy kiss.   
  
It was probably the most awkward kiss in history, Taichi thought. Kazu-kun's lips met Taichi's teeth to start with, and there was so much spit everywhere and Taichi had no idea if it came from him or Kazu-kun. The older man was squeezing Taichi's face just a little too tight, and Taichi couldn't even manage to lower his hands from the shocked position they had taken the moment the kiss started.  
  
Yep, definitely the most awkward, hottest kiss ever.  
  
Kazu-kun pulled away after what felt like only a few seconds and hours at the same time. His cheeks were flushed and he looked a little afraid, looking into Taichi's eyes.  
  
"Happy Birthday, Taicchan... I don't know if you still feel the way I do, but uh... sorry for making you wait?"  
  
Every interaction he had had with Kazu-kun over the past few years flashed through Taichi's head in an instant, now with the brand new light that Kazu-kun liked him back shining upon them. It made everything make so much more sense and Taichi mentally kicked himself for not seeing it. Then again, Kazu-kun hadn't been very clear about his intentions anyway...  
  
He had apparently been silent for too long because Kazunari withdrew his hands like he'd been burnt and rubbed the back of his head awkwardly with one hand. "A-ahaha, oops. I guess I waited too long. I don't blame you for not waiting for me though. It was probably a little unfair of me, b-but I didn't want you to feel pressured or anything and I--"  
  
Taichi decided to shut Kazu-kun's babbling up by pulling him into a tight hug. He squeezed as hard as he could - which was actually pretty hard at this point - and waited until he heard Kazu-kun's breathing even out a little.  
  
"I'm totally, completely still in love with you, Kazu-kun!" It wasn't Taichi's fault that he was crying right then. He had spent the better part of two years thinking his love was completely unrequited when he could have felt secure in the knowledge that he was loved back instead. "I wanted to tell you so bad, but you said...  _ hic _ ... and I get it now but...  _ hic _ ... I still love you so mu-much!"  
  
A laugh sounded by Taichi's ear as a hand soothed through his hair. "Ah man, Taicchan. I definitely didn't wanna make you cry... I love you too, yeah? So you don't have to cry..."  
  
Their second kiss was just as sudden and wet as the first - though this time from tears - and consisted of Taichi missing Kazunari's mouth by several inches, a lot of blushing and grumbling, and led quickly into a pretty alright makeout session.  
  
It was probably the best birthday in Taichi's life.

**Author's Note:**

> I just want to make it clear that while I don't condone adult/child relationships, I also think that 16/19 is a perfectly fine age gap? As long as all parties involved are consenting and responsible about it. But Kazunari's viewpoint is absolutely valid too, and that's why I kind of wanted to play with that idea.
> 
> Thank you so much for reading! I appreciate you all so much~~


End file.
